The Art of Clutter Busting: Why Garage Sales Don't Work

Trust me. Don’t wait until retirement to clean out your house and garage. Whatever stage of life you are in, deal with the clutter now.

These so-called hard times are a great excuse to simplify your life. Over recent years, we have lost money, jobs, houses, vacations and all the extras in this Land of Plenty. And in the stress of losing our material wealth, some of us have lost spouses, family members or have (horrors) had to move in with family and friends to survive.

When you look at the bright side of it all, we are forced to count our blessings and living with less. We are forced to become creative with our time and money. And if you’re smart, you’ve already learned that it’s the relationships in your life that really matter.

Look around. In all this panic of having less money, people are having garage sales. In the past, garage sales used to be fun. Now, they have become a necessity for some people. Friday, Saturday and Sunday, people have garage sales, yard sales and estate sales. They post signs on fences and lampposts. Some signs are vague and don’t post the location, dates and times. But when the sales are over, the signs seldom come down. So the neighborhood also has cardboard clutter to deal with.

Nowadays, people who hold garage sales aren’t selective about what they put out there. For some reason, people think clothes are valuable for resale, and all they do is have clothes displayed on the driveway, the lawn and hanging from trees and fences. In the past, people used to be selective and have their goods marked with prices or neatly arranged on tables. Some individuals would include goodies like homemade arts and crafts. Now, everything seems to be thrown out in piles so they could be stored for the next garage sale. After garage sales, all the unsold stuff in boxes is transported to the nearest charity—forcing the charity to sort through unwanted garbage and sale rejects.

I am married to a packrat who has promised to sell our unwanted things in a garage sale. But because of job changes and work hours, this promise has stretched to almost two years. Two years is a long time for a packrat to accumulate more items.

My packrat is a “someday” man. He saves things because he thinks he will use them someday. That day will never come because he misplaces the items. If he can’t find certain items when he needs them, he goes out and buys them.

I’m a different type of packrat. I like to surround myself with books, magazines and craft projects. I print patterns and recipes off of websites and file them away for “someday”.

Garage sales don’t work for us. Our focus is to clean house. If you need the cash, there is no guarantee you will sell anything or make any money. Unless you like to spend hours prepping for a garage sale and giving up a weekend to sell unwanted items, don’t do it.

A garage sale takes organization. To attract customers, you need to put ads in the newspaper and places like Craigslist and Freecycle. You need to post signs in the neighborhood and have small bills and change available for your customers. Then there’s the set up and take down. Depending where you live, you may have to get a permit to sell.

I don’t like watching people picking through our things. I don’t like dealing with early birds or people who want to bargain down to ridiculous prices or unsupervised children who want things, but don’t have the money to pay for them.

At this point, the name of the game is not to accumulate any more junk. The goal is to organize my household and give unwanted, useable items to charity. Now, I completely bypass garage sales. I don’t hold them and I don’t stop for them. I simply drive on.

By not holding garage sales, I am forced to deal with my clutter problem. Here some of the tips and thoughts on why I donate to charities instead of having garage sales and how I deal with letting go of items which are cluttering my home and causing me stress:

Get Angry

Anger is a positive emotion when it forces you to think and make decisions. When you realize your possessions own you, get angry. As you walk through your home and find yourself not being able to navigate through piles of clutter, get angry that you let your lack of housekeeping skills and hoarding got you this far. After you get angry, decide to do something about the problem.

Deal with the Shame of Not Having Visitors

You want to have people over, but your place is always a mess. Your family and friend are no longer holding back, and they criticize you for not keeping your household in order. You realize you are tired of throwing things into spare rooms and the garage before people come to visit because once your visitors leave, you can’t find anything and have more of a mess.

Turn off the Television

Dig deep and find out why you hold onto things you don’t want, need or don’t use. As a society, we have been spoon fed for years that having more means success. My packrat spouse watches television shows like “Antique Roadshow,” “Pawn Stars,” and “Storage Hunters”. Although these shows can be entertaining, they also fuel his need to either hang onto what he has because they may be valuable someday or make him want go shopping for treasures.

Surrender to the Urge to Purge

The next time you leave your home for several hours or days, think about what it would be like if all you had were the clothes on your back and basics like your wallet. Could you survive? Of course, you could. What choice would you have?

If you took the time and expense to draw up a will or a trust, think about passing on and picturing your descendants having to deal with your death and deciding what to do with your belongings. Would they have to rent a dumpster to clean out your belongings? Or could your possessions fit neatly in bags and boxes and could be donated?

Your treasures may be valuable to you while you’re alive. But when you die, your possessions could just as easily turn out to be your descendants’ nightmare.

Craigslist and Freecycle Can Backfire

If you use websites to give away things, I applaud you. But beware of your behavior because you can be tempted to request free items through Craigslist and Freecycle. Although it makes sense to sign up for these websites in your local area, there is no limit to which cities you can sign up for. If you don’t have any control over accumulating items, stick to only giving things away and using services offered in your hometown.

Donate to the Charity of Your Choice

Like everyone else, charities have taken a financial hit over the years. Toss the junk and donate the usable items to charity. If you aren’t sure about the item, contact the charity. They can usually provide lists of items they will accept.

People have donated to nationally known charities like Goodwill and Salvation Army for years. Other choices include churches, schools, local homeless shelters, veteran’s organizations, women’s shelters, hospices, and animal shelters.

Bust the Clutter and Keep it Out of the Landfills

By donating to a charity, you are putting items to use. Others can use donated items which are still in good shape. You are doing the right thing by recycling useable items. Through your generosity, you are contributing to the environment by keeping these items out of the landfill.

Pat Yourself on the Back

Don’t expect your habits to change overnight. Not everyone can practice the art of purging, but if you’ve made progress, pat yourself on the back. Reward yourself efforts with dinner, a movie or a special trip. Brag about your progress to everyone you know and set more goals. Whatever you do to celebrate, do anything but go shopping. Keep up this new, positive habit, and you will find freedom from the material things which are holding you down.